Dumb laws? Cities ban sleeping in cars

In 2004, Tom Armstrong recieved a ticket for sleeping in his car on Avenida San Pablo in San Clemente. FILE: PAUL BERSEBACH, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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In 2004, Tom Armstrong recieved a ticket for sleeping in his car on Avenida San Pablo in San Clemente. ``I was feeling tired from the drive,'' Armstrong said in 2004. ``I found a street, pulled over ... I was legally parked, and I was getting some rest in the back seat of my van when the sheriff's department pulled up.'' FILE: PAUL BERSEBACH, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Perhaps DumbLaws.com will take note. That's the website with the motto: "Big government. Small brains. Dumb laws."

Here's DumbLaws.com only Orange County entry: "One may not use one's own restroom if the window is open."

Dana Point's ordinance gets the shout-out for at least getting us on the board.

Still, L.A. has 11 entries.

Take heart though. On Wednesday, Rancho Santa Margarita's city council is expected to approve disapproving sleeping in cars.

With any luck, DumbLaws will notice the effort and recognize all our cities who say catnaps and cars don't mix.

• • •

I bought a car specifically to sleep in.

I didn't buy it to nap in the office parking lot. If I were the napping type, I'd do that at my desk.

And I didn't get my car as a substitute for The Couch where men supposedly go when domestic trouble arises. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Before I met my lovely wife, Sue, I lived with a woman in a mobile home on a dirt road near some railroad tracks.

My former bff and I didn't always agree – as you might have guessed since I married Sue. And, yes, one night it seemed best for both of us that I bypass the couch and sleep in my car.

It was not a large car. It was a Honda Civic when Honda Civic's were the size of wheelbarrows. But for a night, it was home – until there was a sharp rap on the window.

I opened my eyes to the breaking dawn and a looming sheriff's deputy. But I couldn't figure out why he was waking me.

It turned out the officer simply wanted to know if I was OK, where I lived and why I was sleeping in this little car.

He grinned knowingly when I told him. And he left me in my safe place.

A domestic call averted.

• • •

Back to why I got a car to sleep in.

Simple – so I can drive to trailheads and get up with the sunrise to hike. But not in Orange County.

According to an excellent story in February by reporter Erika Ritchie, cities that ban sleeping in vehicles include Aliso Viejo, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Laguna Niguel, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano and Tustin.

DumbLaws.com missed them when crediting Cathedral City as the only municipality in the Golden State with prohibiting sleeping in a parked vehicle.

But, as I said, there's hope Wednesday to amp up O.C.'s DumbLaws' rating.

The minority vote was by Councilman Jesse Petrilla who emailed me: "If an individual is intoxicated or simply tired, I would prefer they have the option to sleep in the back seat of their vehicle than to attempt to drive home."

That makes sense. And to be fair to the majority councilmembers, the issue is complex.

Mayor Tony Beall tells me that he agrees drivers should pull over if they are tired or inebriated. And he points out they can do so on private property such as shopping centers, restaurants and gas stations.

Beall says his city had more than 300 phone calls last year about suspicious activity in cars. "Without an ordinance like this, the individual could just ignore police."

The mayor also brings up the issue of homeless people who may need to live in their cars. They, too, have other options than parking near homes.

RSM's law is aimed toward protecting residential neighborhoods where, Beall says, people have a reasonable expectation not to have people sleeping in cars in front of their house – a solid point.

• • •

In researching this issue, I came across an online network of advice for homeless people.

If you're homeless, the first advice is to get a car, preferably a car that runs, but at least a car you can push. Failing that, any car.

A vehicle is not just a place for one night. It's a mobile home, a place where you can live, store things, have some security.

I learned smart squatters use a car cover. The cover serves two purposes. It offers privacy. And it gives one time to react to thieves – and police.

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